South Beloit Preparing For Legal Marijuana
These new marijuana laws can be tricky to navigate for the first couple months. Especially for surrounding states. No bordering state has made the move to legalize marijuana which makes it even harder for them to enforce their laws. Residents coming to Illinois to purchase marijuana end up driving back to their home state with a now illegal substance.
Come March, South Beloit will open its first dispensary. One wrong turn or one stop at a gas station could essentially make you a felon. Transporting drugs across state lines.
The big concern for Wisconsin police is residents coming to Illinois, using marijuana, then traveling back across state lines while under the influence.
According to WREX, South Beloit Police Chief Adam Truman will be sending some of their officers to a new class called ARIDE, advanced roadside impaired driving enforcement to better identify drivers who may be high and stop them before they cross the border.
It's kind of funny how the tides have turned. I remember hearing stories from aunts and uncles who would drive up to Wisconsin when they were 18 because Illinois had adopted the age of 21 for alcohol consumption but Wisconsin hadn't yet. They claimed they stayed at friend's or family member's houses when they would go out there, but who knows for sure. If they would just legalize it on the federal level no one would have to worry about breaking the law in bordering towns.